Tonight, the Cowboys destroyed the Eagles again, earning themselves a trip to the Metrodome, with a berth in the NFC Championship Game on the line.

The Cowboys have been arguably the most impressive team in the NFC over the past month.  Their great run started in Week 15 with a surprising victory over the then-undefeated Saints in New Orleans, and has reached a crescendo with consecutive blow-out wins over division rival Philly.

Their next opponent is a Vikings team that was itself, for a time, arguably the most impressive squad in the NFC.  But the Vikes lost some of their luster when they dropped three of their final five, their two wins coming against a Bengals team that has since been exposed as mediocre, and a Giants team that had clearly packed it in emotionally.

What I’m trying to say is, if momentum means anything, the Cowboys have a huge advantage even though the game is in Minnesota, where the Vikings went 8-0 during the regular season.  And then there’s that whole DeMarcus Ware vs. Bryant McKinnie match-up, the thought of which should be enough to send a shudder down the spine of even the most upbeat Purple fan.

Of course, the match-up all the big media outlets will be discussing is at quarterback.  Brett Favre seeks to pad his legendary resume by making a third Super Bowl, while Tony Romo, who until today had never won a playoff game, looks to claim his first career championship, and join the likes of Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach in the Cowboys QB pantheon.

There will be storylines galore leading into this one, for sure.  I’m already preparing for coverage overload.  And lots of experts predicting a Cowboys victory.

1.  I don’t know if the emotion of the homecoming helped Brett Favre, but it certainly didn’t hurt him.  One thing’s for sure:  Brett likes playing against the Packers.  In his two games against them this year, he is 41-for-59 with 515 yards, 7 TDs and no picks.  2 of his 3 highest QB rating games are against the Packers (the other was against Baltimore).  And it’s not like you can just chalk it up to familiarity with the Packers team either:  they’re playing a different defense now than the one they had when he was there.  The main problem for the Pack against Favre has been the lack of pass rush.  You just can’t give that guy so much time.  If you let him stand in the pocket, he will pick apart your defense; doesn’t matter if he knows your players, knows your system or hates your GM.

2.  Go ahead teams – keep game-planning to stop Adrian Peterson first.  Keep bringing up extra men.  Keep keying on him.  He is still among the league leaders in yards, is still getting his touchdowns, and now he’s a legit threat catching the ball out of the backfield.  Oh, and he’s not fumbling anymore.  And, in case you didn’t notice, we’re 7-1.  So suck it.

3.  Percy Harvin had his best all-around game of the season, catching 5 balls for 84 yards and a touchdown (an assist on the touchdown to the Packers DBs for knocking each other out of the play), and helping set the Vikes up in great field position with two long kick returns.  Is he the rookie of the year?  I don’t know.  I do know that he is a serious, big-time weapon.  He has good hands, great speed, fantastic YAK ability and isn’t afraid to deliver the blow.  And being sick during the week doesn’t seem to affect him during games.

4.  The line of demarcation between good Vikings defense and poor Vikings defense was glaringly obvious.  When their front-4 is getting mad pressure, they are a great defense.  When their front-4 isn’t getting that much pressure, they are a weak, even porous defense.  Thankfully, Jared Allen and Ray Edwards were both dominating for long stretches of the game, and that was enough to keep the Packers from piling on the points.  Obviously, the Packers have a good QB and some nice receivers, and are going to get their yards and touchdowns.  The Vikings made enough plays when they needed to.

5.  Brad Childress can drive you nuts sometimes.  Late in the first half, he elects to go for it on fourth down instead of taking the field goal, and AD (who – memo to everyone – is NOT A GREAT SHORT YARDAGE BACK) gets stuffed.  So, Vikings get the ball back with a little over two minutes left, and instead of showing that same bulldog instinct, Chilly goes into his usual run the clock down, take the 3 and go into halftime mode (for which Troy Aikman and Howie Long both blasted him).  I’m not entirely certain what is going through Chilly’s mind, but, he has this bizarre, infuriating tendency to play it safer and safer the closer he gets to the half.  I think there might be some kind of childhood issue at play here.  I know he likes playing dress-up more than a normal man.  Dude’s head is full of snakes.

6.  At first I was amused by Packer fan bitterness, but now I’m actually worried for them.  I live in Wisconsin, so I know how such emotions can quickly turn into destructiveness, especially when alcohol enters the mix.  The whole state needs therapy.

7.  Brian Robison hasn’t done much this year.  I’m afraid that, if we remember him for anything, it will be the fumble that let the Packers back into the game.  He is officially the third-biggest knucklehead on the defense, behind Benny Sapp and Ray Edwards.  And speaking of Benny Sapp:  yeah, he had a nice game again, made a huge play batting down a pass late; but would someone please get hold of that young man and tell him to stop almost getting in fights, especially when we’re winning?

8.  I have come to the conclusion that Asher Allen and Karl Paymah both suck equally.  Thankfully, I think Antoine Winfield will be back after the bye, certainly after the Lions game.  And that’s good, because the less Allen/Paymah get on the field, the better the defense will be.

9.  Do the Vikings need to consider rotating defensive linemen more to keep guys fresh?  I ask because it seems like Jared Allen and Kevin Williams are fading as the game goes on.  Oh, and while we’re on the subject of K-Will:  Is there a better lineman in the league when it comes to batting/tipping/deflecting balls?  Those plays are as big as sacks and run-stuffs in the backfield, if you ask me.

10. John Sullivan says it was his fault that ball got snapped before Favre was ready.  Did he really need to tell us?

Bonus: Johnny Jolly, I thank you for being an idiot.